Hunter Johnson chases the puck in front of the Kelowna net as the Coyotes kept up the pressure on the Chiefs Saturday night. The Coyotes outshot the Chiefs 28-8 in that second period and won the game 6-3. (Richard McGuire photo)

The Osoyoos Coyotes had a better game Saturday night against the Kelowna Chiefs after being defeated by them earlier in the week.

On Saturday the Coyotes beat the Chiefs 6-3 after losing to them 3-1 on Wednesday. Both games were played at the Sun Bowl Arena.

Saturday’s win all but ensures the Coyotes will finish first in the Okanagan Division of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League.

Second-place Summerland now trails Osoyoos by 10 points. They have only six games remaining and would need to win all but one of them, with Osoyoos winning none, to even catch up.

Saturday’s game saw Carter Robinson score just 13 seconds into the first period to put the Coyotes in front.

A second Coyote goal by Jackson Barrett close to the middle of the period gave the Coyotes a 2-0 lead.

But late in the period, Kelowna scored two quick goals, the first on a power play, and the period ended in a 2-2 tie.

In the second period, Cody Allen scored twice for the Coyotes, both times on power plays.

Carter Shannon got the Coyotes’ fourth goal of the game when he poked the puck into the corner of the net from the side.

The Coyotes hammered the Chiefs in that period, with 28 shots on goal to the Chiefs’ eight.

Only at one point after the halfway mark did the Coyotes get hemmed into their own end for a while, allowing Juanre Naude of the Chiefs to score the only Kelowna goal of the period.

The Chiefs recovered a bit in the third period, outshooting the Coyotes 17-13, but the lone goal of the period went to the Coyotes.

Austin Cleaver scored on a power play to end the game 6-3 for the Coyotes.

In Wednesday’s game, the two goalies – Daniel Paul for Osoyoos and Joseph McLeod for Kelowna – were picked as home and visiting stars respectively.

Paul faced 37 shots on goal and McLeod faced a staggering 49.

The Chiefs scored the first goal of the game in the final minutes of the first period.

With less than a minute remaining in the period, Colin Bell scored for Osoyoos to tie the game. The two Carters – Robinson and Shannon – got the assists.

Kelowna got the only goal of the second period when Aidan Bar-Lev-Wise connected just over five minutes into the period.

The Chiefs’ 2-1 lead held for most of the third period.

The Coyotes gambled and pulled Paul for an extra attacker, trying to tie the score in the final minute.

But with just 54 seconds remaining, Bar-Lev-Wise got his second goal of the night for the Chiefs, scoring on the empty net.

In other remaining games of the season, the Coyotes travel to Summerland to face the Steam on Friday, Feb. 9.

The next night they host the North Okanagan Knights in the first of two games against the Armstrong team. The following Wednesday, Feb. 14, the two teams play again in Armstrong.

To finish the season in the middle of the month, the Coyotes travel to Revelstoke and then return home for one more game against the Knights.

With three of the remaining games being against the last-place Knights, who have only won 13 games this season, it would take incredible bad luck for the Coyotes not to finish first in their division.

RICHARD McGUIRE

Osoyoos Times

Carter Shannon managed to poke the puck into the corner of the net, past Kelowna goalie Reign Turley, to score the Coyotes’ fourth goal Saturday night. (Richard McGuire photo)

Coyotes celebrate after Cody Allen scored the fifth Coyote goal Saturday night and Allen’s second of the game. (Richard McGuire photo)